Fond Farewells
by Maddy02
Summary: Post TRY the gang spend one last day together to say thier goodbyes. Shameless fluff, a friendship fic. completed
1. Amelia and Gourry

Mass disclaimer; The following story uses characters that do not belong to me. I make no profit from thier usage however and intend no harm.

There will be 15 chapters contaning just about every pairing possible from TRY. Anyone who knows me knows i favour the TRAD couples but you can read as much or as little into each chapter as you like. Updates will occur as and when i get each chapter finished. Happy reading!

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"Well isn't that pretty?" Said Gourry as the group of six (himself, Lina, Amelia, Zelgadiss, Filia and Xellos) made their way into town to find an inn for the night before they all went their separate ways. 

"Isn't what pretty Gourry-san?"

"That garden."

Amelia followed the direction of the swordsman's gaze and frowned. There was a wall blocking her view, though Gourry was clearly was tall enough that it didn't impede his vision. The tiny princess jumped to try and see over it, only managing to catch a glimpse of leaves from the various trees she could already see over the wall.

Chuckling kindly Gourry lifted her up and set her on his shoulders, holding her hands so she wouldn't tip backwards as her legs draped round his neck and down his front.

"Oh wow!"

Amelia's face lit up at the sight of the garden in front of her, it was truly beautiful. Gravel walks divided flowerbeds filled with so many different colours it was like a kaleidoscope -except, she thought, it was arranged so well that the colours faded into each other and didn't clash at all. At the centre there was a water feature, simple and elegant, throwing water reflections onto a nearby bench. Pink and white lily flowers floated in the water looking very tranquil. Pear, cherry and apple trees lined the edge of the wall, all flowering in the early spring and losing delicate blossoms to the gentle breeze.

"It must have taken a long time to grow it all. But it was worth it, it's beautiful!"

"Does it really take such a long time for plants and stuff to grow?"

"Hmmm… Well flowers grow fairly fast, a couple of months or so. But trees and shrubs take a lot longer, years even –like us."

Gourry frowned and tried to work out how he grew like a tree. It took him a moment, but eventually he realised she meant trees grew slowly like they did. Not that humans grew by standing completely still with their feet buried in the ground. He smiled as he made that connection in his head and another thought occurred to him.

"You're a flower then."

"What?"

"Well you said flowers grow faster than trees and such… and you've grown a lot recently, so you're like a flower."

Amelia blinked then scratched the back of her head in embarrassment, blushing slightly at the comparison.

"That's not really what I meant."

"You have grown though."

"You said that before Gourry-san."

"I did?" Somehow he got the impression she wasn't referring to _this _conversation.

"Yeah, when we were at the fake marriage temple remember?" '_of course he doesn't remember'_ she corrected herself mentally before elaborating "You said I was getting really tall and I told you how my sister is almost as tall as you."

As she was speaking she reached up form her perch on his shoulders and plucked some blossoms from one of the trees hanging over the wall and began weaving them into a wreath.

"I didn't mean you've grown tall… although you have… I mean you've grown… _inside_ y'know? You don't rush into things as much as you used to."

"You mean I'm mature?"

"Yeah! That's it!"

As he said it Gourry slammed a fist into his open palm, the sudden gesture causing Amelia to lose her balance given as she wasn't holding onto him anymore. Inevitably she slipped off his back to land on the ground with a thump.

"Owie."

"You're still Amelia though." He commented as he helped her up.

They began walking again to catch up with the others enjoying the late morning sunshine and the amiable mood before Amelia spoke up again.

"Hey, Gourry-san?"

"Yeah?"

"You will come and visit me in Saillune won't you?"

"Of course" he grinned "I'll have to check up on how you've grown."


	2. Lina and Xellos

"What are they laughing at?" asked Lina irritably as the sound of Gourry and Amelia laughing some way behind her reached her ears. If they dawdled any more they might make her late for lunch! Lina was already in a bad mood that day, not liking the thought of saying goodbye to so many friends, the thought of being late for lunch (or indeed any meal) didn't do much to improve her mood.

"HEY, YOU TWO! HURRY UP! YOU'LL GROW ROOTS IF YOU STAND ABOUT THERE ALL DAY!" she called back. For some reason her comments only caused further humour between the two although they did pick up the pace a bit.

"They certainly are attached aren't they?"

Lina looked at Xellos who was suddenly standing next to her. Presumably he'd just teleported in from wherever he went when he wasn't around bugging them.

"What do you mean?"

"That's a secret."

WHACK

From his new vantage point on the ground Xellos looked up into the fiery jaws of death. Or at least, the fiery jaws of extreme pain.

"Listen buddy. You can't start up a conversation like that then pull that secret stuff with me. So answer or prepare to eat fireball!"

Xellos stood up quickly and held his hands out in a placating gesture.

"I mean that there's a bond between Gourry-san and Amelia-san. Between everyone in this group it seems."

"Everyone? Yourself included? I didn't think mazoku _could_ care." Lina's anger was _temporarily_ forgotten in the face of what looked to be an interesting debate.

"There's a difference between attachment and emotion."

Lina frowned as she considered this, still walking towards the centre of town.

"But still, you consider yourself attached to us?"

"Well you are rather amusing for humans. And I'd prefer you not to die, given all the work I've done so far in keeping you all alive."

"It's a yes or no question Xellos." Lina replied tetchily.

"Yare, yare. Someone's in a bad mood today."

"_Xellos_"

Lina's voice was dripping with lethal promise, but Xellos only smiled, savouring the taste of her anger and frustration. It was rather a shame that he wouldn't see any of them much after today. They really were amusing and when they got together usually they generated enough negative emotions to feed him for years. And he did rather enjoy the time he spent watching, teasing and travelling with them.

"Yes." He said at length. "I consider myself attached to you and your… _entourage_."

"I do seem to attract people don't I?" Asked Lina and looked around the group, remembering other former companions who weren't with them, Sylphiel, Martina and even Zangulus.

"It would be hard not to with your reputation."

"And what's THAT supposed to mean?"

The deadly tone was back in her voice and the light flashed dangerously in her eyes, but Xellos was unfazed. He walked a few paces in front, turned to face the irate sorceress, winked and waggled a finger at her.

"That is a secret."

"_XELLOS!_"

She lunged for him but the trickster priest floated out of the way giggling at her, always just out of reach. Yes, he was attached to them; he enjoyed it to much not to be. Finally he allowed Lina to catch him, falling over backwards so she landed fully on top of him.

"Why Lina-chan" he smiled, running a gloved hand down her cheek "I didn't know you cared."

Seconds later when he was flying though the air, Lina's hand print across his face, Xellos decided it was probably a good idea not to talk to her again until after she had eaten.


	3. Filia and Zel

"Say, Filia…"

"Yes Zelgadiss-san?" asked Filia turning her attention away from the glorious sight of the namagomi being sent flying (and serve him right) to the stoic chimera.

"I was wondering if you might know of any temples or such in the area that might have a cure for me."

The former priestess frowned in concentration, her brow furrowing slightly as she tried to think of a way to help her friend.

"There is a temple northwest of here… They have a purification spring that was supposedly pretty powerful. And there's another further to the west where they keep the holy counter-curses. Apart from that nothing comes to mind."

He nodded and began committing the information to memory, mentally deciding which would be more likely to be his cure. The holy counter-curses certainly seemed promising. At least if there wasn't a cure among them there were likely to be leads to others.

He was so deep in thought that he almost missed Filia's question.

"Does it really mean so much to you?"

He blinked and looked up sharply. What kind of stupid question was that?

"Of course! I hardly want to go around looking like a freak the rest of my life."

Filia sighed and shook her head sadly.

"You humans are strange. You place too much value in appearances. It seems to me you have everything you want already."

Seeing the look of anger, indignation and bewilderment on the chimera's face Filia elaborated further.

"You have friends who love you for who you are, you are free to travel wherever you will and you have the power to do so. There are not many as fortunate as you."

_Fortunate! _A voice inside Zel's head screamed. _There is absolutely nothing fortunate about this! _Another, calmer voice replied; _she has a point though…_and Zelgadiss shook his head to clear it of the conflicting thoughts.

"I… I just want to return to how I used to be… This body… it isn't my own… I only want to be myself again."

"You are you Zelgadiss-san. No matter how you look you'll always be the same person inside. But if it makes you happy then I hope you find your cure."

To his relief there was no sympathy in her eyes or voice, only genuine goodwill. He gave her a grateful smile and uttered a small 'thanks' before inquiring what she would do when the group split.

"I was thinking I'd open a shop. I need some way of bringing in money to raise Val properly."

"What sort of shop?" he asked, curious as to what the dragon-lady could do.

"A pottery shop of course!" she exclaimed and Zel was hard pressed not to go crashing to the ground. "I'll sell platters and mugs and figures and vases naturally."

"You'd better be careful with your mace in a place like that."

Filia shot him a glare for that remark (as if she would ever be so careless as to destroy a vase) before suddenly being struck by inspiration.

"That's it! I can call it the Mace and Vase! Thank you Zelgadiss-san!"

Zelgadiss did go crashing to the ground this time and got up only to be sent back down again by Lina and Gourry charging past yelling 'food' having spotted a tavern ahead. He sighed and let Filia help him up before following after them. A cup of coffee would be good right about now…


	4. Lina and Amelia

"Lina-san"

Lina looked up, she was the only one still at the table –everyone else had finished their meal and gone off to explore the surrounding area and check their rooms etc. It seemed Amelia was back already.

"This is for you."

Amelia held out her hand and allowed the golden chain and pendant to drop down slowly into Lina's palm with a soft clink. Lina picked up the pendant and looked at it –a circle with the Saillune crest in it. A grin spread its way across the sorceress's face allowing a slightly shaper than normal tooth to appear.

"Is this…"

"You can't charge money to it Lina-san" Lina's face fell "It just shows you have a connection to the house of Saillune. If you show that then 9 times out of 10 you'll be able to get what you want without needing to fireball someone. Within the barrier kingdoms anyway."

"Aww, where's the fun in that?" She teased. Although at the same time she recognised the favour Amelia was doing her –this would save her a lot of time and effort… and convenience. But the kinds of things she was likely to use it for weren't necessary the kind Saillune would wish to be associated with.

"Are you sure though? Why are you giving this to me anyway."

"Because I don't trust Gourry-san not to lose it." They both grinned at that and Amelia continued. "Besides… You're my best friend. You're more like a sister to me really. So I thought, at the very least, I could give you this. Seeing as I won't be able to do that for you in person."

Lina blinked. A sister? She looked from Amelia to the chain in her hand and back again. Yeah, a sister. An annoying, better developed, justice crazed sister, but a sister all the same. Come to think of it, she was probably closer to Amelia than to her biological sister. Well, you can choose your friends…

She smiled and slipped the chain over her head, tucking the pendant into her tunic before wrapping the younger girl in a brief hug and ruffling her hair affectionately.

"You better have a full banquet laid on when I come to visit."

"I'll tell the cooks to start the moment I get back." Amelia flashed a victory sign that Lina returned then dashed to the door and indicated outside.

"Come on then, lets go find an ice-cream stand or something!"

"Lina-san you just ate!"

"Well by the time we find one I'll be hungry again, and justice doesn't work on an empty stomach right?"

Laughing the two rushed outside for a last bit of fun together, as sisters.


	5. Zel and Xel

Zelgadiss was seated in the inn's small garden, looking over a map of the area when Lina and Amelia breezed past. He looked up to see them go racing by.

"I'll race you to the end of the street!"

"On the count of three then! One, two, GO!"

"Ah! Hey! That's not fair! What happened to three?"

"Ridiculous" Zel muttered before looking back to his map, only to find it was no longer in his hand and was in fact being held by Xellos who had materialised on the seat beside him.

"Planning to visit a few temples I see?"

Zelgadiss snatched the map back roughly.

"What's it to you?"

"That… is a secret."

Zelgadiss huffed and smoothed the map back out returning to his study and trying to ignore the priest looking over his shoulder. Not an easy task, particularly with Xellos humming under his breath right in Zel's ear.

"Do you mind?"

"No."

Xellos grinned wider as the chimera glared at him. Here was another person in a bad mood about having to leave his friends. Although Zel would die in the most painful manner possible twice over before admitting it. His irritation was rather tasty –and what better to irritate him further than the mention of certain past events?

"Tell me Zelgadiss, do you regret the decision you made? To become stronger?"

"Tch, I regret everything that happened since that day."

Xellos' eyes opened. Now this was an opportunity he couldn't miss.

"Everything? My, my Zelgadiss, you would make a wonderful mazoku."

Zel leapt to his feet and whirled around to face the trickster. Anger practically radiating from him.

"How dare you suggest that?"

"Well you just told me you regret _everything_ that happened since then. In other words; you regret becoming friends with Lina-san, Gourry-san and Amelia-san, you regret helping save the world, you regret the death of Hellmaster, Gaav, Darkstar and the part of Shabranigdo you helped destroy, you regret helping to find the Clair bible, You regret- "

"Enough! Point taken!"

"So you admit you'd make a good mazoku?"

"Life is wonderful."

Xellos crashed to the ground and grimaced at the sense of smug satisfaction he was now picking up from Zel. He rose and brushed himself off indignantly.

"Now Zelgadiss-san, that wasn't very nice. I might even think you regret meeting **me**."

The chimera smirked and returned to his map without a word. Xellos took up a position on the bench, arms behind his head and one leg crossed over the other as a respectful andeven amiable silence fell over the two. Of course silence never lasts long whenever the slayers gang is involved.

"So, you don't regret everything that's happened?"

Zel graced his companion with a small half-smile.

"No, not _everything._"

Xellos smiled and sat back again as the amiable mood continued.


	6. Filia and Gourry

Filia looked out the window and sighed. She may have decided on her future plans but… It was going to take a lot to pull them off. First she was going to have to find the money to buy or rent a shop. Then she needed to get all the materials and so on all the while looking after Val-egg and feeding herself somehow.

And she had to do it all on her own- all her friends, her teachers, her acquaintances everyone she grew up with -anyone she could have gone to for help- had been wiped out… She sighed and rested her head in her hands.

"Cheer up!"

Filia showed no sign of movement so Gourry slid into the seat next to her.

"C'mon cheer up! It can't be that bad- we beat Dimstart didn't we?"

"Darkstar" the dragon corrected automatically, still not raising her head. "Yes, we did."

"Then shouldn't you be happy?"

"Well yes… I mean I am happy about that I just don't know how I'm going to survive from here on…"

Gourry blinked and thought about that for a while. Before his train of thought could get too far though it was diverted by a group of kids running around –children of some of the inn's other clients. They were playing hide and seek under the tables and chairs, behind the curtains and so on. He smiled as he watched them carry on obliviously to anyone else around them.

"They have it right." He said causing Filia to look up to see what he was referring to "They don't worry about tomorrow; they just try to make the most of today and focus only on the good things."

"We can't all be so naïve though" Filia argued.

"Maybe" said Gourry not entirely sure what 'naïve' meant "but worrying about it won't change anything."

Filia paused to consider this. The swordsman was right, worrying wouldn't change a thing. She was acting like the priestess she had been again –needing everything to be set in stone; the mazoku were purely bad, dragons were purely good, the supreme elder was always right, if you thought things out ahead of time they would get done sooner. All of these beliefs had been smashed to bits over their adventure. Like when she had planned to acquire Lina's services. She would test their strength bring them to the temple and save the world –she hadn't been anticipating the chaos that had followed or how their plans changed so quickly depending on the situation. She had to loosen up more and… 'Go with the flow' as the humans put it.

"You're right Gourry-san, thank you."

"No problem" he grinned and made to stand up only fall to the ground at a sudden pressure on his head and a startled cry from Filia.

Looking to see the source of the problem they discovered that while they had been talking one of the children had tied the ends of their hair together in a knot. Filia felt her anger rising and reached for her mace to teach a lesson to the kid responsible when she was stopped by the sound of Gourry laughing. She looked at him sitting on the ground and laughing his head off, blinked a few times and began to see the funny side of it herself. She giggled than chuckled then began outright laughing.

After all, there was no point worrying over it.

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**A/N:** My muse seemes to have died recently, or rather Gourry's chapters are very hard to write which is why this took so long. Sorry! 

Ichiban Victory; I've made a friend! hehe, thank you so much. I'm really glad you like the idea although personaly i don't think the writing is that good ( i lack self-confidence) As for where the story is going, lets just say it gets fluffier from here on out. Particuarly towards the end. LiltingTune (Uta-chan); Don't worry LZ, FL and FX are all coming up. But it wouldn't be just for me to leave out LGso they'll be getting one too (as will AX) I hope you like the coming chapters just as much and i promise i'll update as soon as i can. Hitteh Pitteh; Of the chapters i've written so far i agree that the AG one is the best (hence why i put it first) Although the AZ chapter is shaping up to be muuuuuuuch better -_wink_-


	7. Xellos and Amelia

Amelia walked along by herself humming lightly and taking the occasional lick from her ice cream. When they had eventually found a stand Lina had demolished hers in all of three seconds before dashing back to the inn to start searching the menu for tonight's meal. Amelia preferred to walk round the town and see the sights so, here she was.

"Good afternoon Amelia-san." A familiar voice seemed to ring from all around causing her to jump a bit.

"H-hello Xellos-san. How are you?"

"That's a secret." He replied, phasing into view and walking next to her. "You shouldn't be out on your own princess, anything might happen…" he left the sentence hanging. Not quite a threat but certainly meant to unnerve.

Realising his game Amelia batted her eyelids and put on her sweetest most sugar-filled voice and clasped her hands over her heart (careful not to get ice-cream anywhere) as she replied.

"Oh but you wouldn't let anything happen to me Xellos-san! Such a stout, devoted ally of justice as yourself would never allow a comrade to fall into peril! I know that should anything happen you would use the shining light of justice in your heart to lead your dear friends to safety and be a beacon to the world for truth, love and justice; showing everyone you met how wonderful life truly is!" She turned from him and struck a pose, finger pointing skyward as her cape flared dramatically behind her in a conveniently timed gust of wind "You would make sure the hammer of justice smote those who spread chaos in the world and make a safe place for children to sing, puppies to play, fluffy bunnies to- "

She broke off as she realised Xellos was crumpled to the ground, a very sickly shade of green and breathing heavily as he fought to keep from losing consciousness.

"Ah! Xellos-san! I'm so sorry!"

She knelt by his side and helped him sit up. He seemed to recover rather quickly but the truth was he was feeding from her guilt to get rid of all the… sickeningly sweet thoughts she had just instilled.

"Please…" he gasped out "Don't do that again."

"I'm sorry Xellos-san, but you deserved it! Trying to scare me like that was most unjust!" she proclaimed. But seeing the tinge of green still lingering about him relented a little "Although I might have gone a bit too far."

"Just a bit" he agreed and allowed her to help him back to his feet.

"Here" she offered him the remainder of her cone as a kind of apology "It's not Saillune soft-serve but it's really good!"

"That's quite alright princess" he said straightening up and only leaning on his staff a little "I'll drop by Saillune sometime and have you buy me the real stuff to make up for it." He added sensing her desire to make up and recognising an opportunity for even better ice-cream. "I think I'm also going to start warning mazoku to stay far away from you." He mused aloud.

"Gee, that's nice of you Xellos-san!"

"Believe me, I'm not doing it for _your_ benefit."


	8. Zel and Lina

He was brooding again. It wasn't very hard to tell with Zelgadiss. He had a kind of aura that seemed to suck the life and colour from anything around him. Unfortunately for him Lina would -not- tolerate any of her friends being gloomy.

She loomed over the table then slammed her hands down onto it to get his attention and, sure enough, his head jerked up and his hand went to his sword hilt – automatic reflex.

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?"

"You're being all gloomy and depressive again! Its bad enough we all have to split up later without you being moody as well. So cheer up!"

"What, you just expect me to suddenly switch to being happy?"

"Yes!"

Zel's head hit the table as he facefaulted the only way he could while sitting down. He sighed and straightened back up again, thankfully none of his hair got stuck in the table this time.

"What do you care if I'm depressed anyway?"

"Because It's like there's a black hole sitting in the corner over here leeching the joy out of everything else." She leant forward slightly and winked "I know you're going to miss me desperately Zel, but you really don't need to worry about it."

"Miss _you_?"

"Of course! Without a beautiful, young, talented sorcery genius around to lighten your day you'll probably go insane. But you'll just have to accept that I have to spend time with other people too!" She gave a dramatic sigh and clutched a hand over her heart "It's so hard to be as popular as I am."

"_Sure_."

"It takes a lot of work to be so caring, smart, funny, skilled, beautiful, modest, generous-" Lina rambled on listing all her good qualities and a lot of good qualities she didn't have but claimed to anyway.

"Greedy, self-centred and with atrocious table manners?" Zel muttered quietly to himself while she was speaking, but didn't count on her excellent hearing.

"**WHAT WAS THAT?"**

Zelgadiss had a vision of his impeding death as Lina glared at him, eyes on fire, fangs showing and a fireball already formed in hand.

"N-nothing! Nothing at all!"

"That's what I thought." She said it menacingly, but to his relief the fireball disappeared. "So, why don't you just admit you're gonna miss me and stop being gloomy?"

"Alright, I'll miss you Lina."

"Jeez, I come here, nothing in it for me at all, just trying to cheer a guy up, and what do I- wait a minute what did you say!"

"I'll miss you Lina." He repeated.

Lina stopped and stared at him, blinked, blinked again and then sunk down into a chair.

"Well whaddya know" she mused aloud "miracles _do_ happen."

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**A/N**: Rabid AZ fan that I am, I thought that was going to be a lot harder to write than it was... Mind, it's not _exactly _fluffy per-se. So I appologise to any LZ fans who were dissapointed by this. 

By the way, does anyone know how to get asterix's and squiggles and percentage signs and so on display in fics? Just out of curiosity.

Hitteh Pitteh: Very sorry, but we've got to get through AF, GX, FL, GZ and FX before the AZ chapter. And Gourry chapters are very hard to write so it may be some time. If it makes you feel better though, I've got a multi-chapter AZ fic in the works. encyser: I have to admit I was particuarly proud of that line myself, great minds think alike huh? Ichiban Victory: That 'as always' at the end of your last review absolutely made my day. Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou! Hehe, I'm gonna be bouncing around for the rest of the day now as well.


	9. Amelia and Filia

It was so nice to have someone to share a civilised cup of tea with! Filia sat in her room at a small coffee table with Amelia sharing a well-deserved pot of high quality tea.

During their adventures Filia had been quite surprised to see that Amelia (a princess no less) ate as voraciously as Lina and Gourry did. She began to suspect however, that that was simply a matter of survival in order to get _any_ food from the infamous duo, because now, sitting here and sharing the tea and a small plate of biscuits, her good breeding was showing through.

"Another cup Filia-san?"

"Yes please… Thank you, that's enough."

Amelia set the pot back down after filling her own cup and looked over at the dragon egg lying in a basket near Filia's bed.

"How long do you suppose it will be until he hatches?"

"I'm not really sure" Filia replied thoughtfully "I don't know much about Ancient dragons, even then he wasn't born in the normal way. Golden eggs usually take about fifty years to develop fully though."

"Fifty years? Wow that's a long time…"

"To you maybe, it's not really so long for a dragon."

"Fifty years… I'll probably be queen by then, if I'm even alive… I guess I won't be able to visit then." She giggled slightly, but Filia could tell she was upset.

"Don't worry about it Amelia-san, I'll bring him to visit you if you can't make it! Besides, like I said, he's not a Golden dragon and he wasn't born the usual way, you never know he might hatch tommo- NAMAGOMI!"

The dragon's tail suddenly popped out as she reacted to the presence she could feel around her, even if Xellos didn't show his face she could tell when he was around.

"Filia-san! Filia-san calm down!"

"That mazoku's here! In my room!" she wailed, but Amelia grabbed her arms, forcing her to look into the human's eyes.

"Filia-san! Repeat after me; Life is wonderful."

"L-life is wonderful?" Filia was slightly confused, but as she said it she felt his presence diminish slightly.

"Good now; Life is wonderful, living is marvellous, love is beautiful, I love life!"

Filia caught on to Amelia's plan and repeated after her in a sing-song voice. Before she even finished she felt Xellos disappear again and managed to bring her tail back in under control.

"Thank you Amelia-san. I wouldn't have thought of that."

"That's probably why he picks on you, you react the way he wants you too."

"I do not! I would never do what that mazoku wants!"

"Ah right, right!" Amelia backed up nervously "More tea?"

"Ah, yes, thank you. By the way… would you teach me that song?"

Amelia grinned and launched into the lesson; more than happy to promote the ways of truth, love and justice, especially to a willing audience!

* * *

**A/N;** Considering the amount of reviews I got when I first put this story up (one) I've been most pleased by the amount I've been getting recently, which encouraged me to write this chapter sooner than I'd planned.

As much as I appriciate the reviews though, you can stop pestering me to get to the AZ chapter - Good things come to those who wait after all. And I assure you, patience will be well rewarded.

Ichiban Victory; If Slayers had ended at the first series I would understand why people might think there was hidden romance between Zel and Lina (that said I can still pick out a fair amount of AZ moments in there) when we get to Next though, it just becomes so obvious that they're friends and no more, especialy with the continuing LG bond -You could probably tell me much more of the various relationships given as you have more of the media available than I, so your praise of that chapter means a lot (thank you thank you thank you)Hitteh Pitteh: Soon enough for ya?Steven P.P; Very hard to write indeed. Particuarly Gourry as he's rarely without Lina, Thank you for the compliment though (grin) Yexis Metallium; Well i can't have my reviewers die on me now can I? I'll update as fast as i can, no worries.


	10. Gourry and Xellos

Having been chased from Filia's room by all the positive emotions Xellos set out to find the nearest source of angst he could to help get himself back into the swing of things.

Surprisingly enough the nearest source of negative emotions wasn't Zel.

Usually in his spare time Gourry would go through a series of sword exercises to keep in shape (not that this required very much given the amount of exercise he got travelling with Lina). Now however, he sat outside under a tree mourning the loss of his sword. His normally sunny eyes were clouded and his good-natured smile replaced by a frown so unlike his usual self that Xellos _had_ to find out why. (Anything that could break even Gourry's spirit was useful information to a mazoku after all)

"My! Gourry-san, why the long face?"

Gourry blinked in confusion and ran his hands over his face and around his head.

"Long face? It doesn't feel any different from usual."

Xellos crashed to the ground in a rather undignified manner and a sweatdrop formed as he moved to crouch near the swordsman.

"No, I mean, why are you upset?"

"It's nothing really, I just miss my sword. I feel like I've lost an arm or something…"

"I see, it must be hard for you -it was such an important family heirloom wasn't it?"

"No, it's not that."

"Oh, what then?" Xellos was intrigued.

"Well I said I'd protect Lina for the rest of my life, without a sword I'm not really much use, I'll only get in her way. And if or when a mazoku attacks she'd be the one looking after me."

Xellos was admittedly rather surprised by the depth of thought the (ex)swordsman had just displayed, he was thinking ahead to the future scuffles they were likely to run into, which was unlike his usual easy going I'll-just-follow-Lina's-lead attitude. Still waters run deep it seems.

"In other words, you don't want to be a burden?"

"What's a burden? Is it a type of fish?"

Xellos hit the ground again. So maybe still waters didn't run _that_ deep.

"Never mind. But why don't you get a sword here? You should be able to buy a normal one somewhere in town until you can find an enchanted blade that would suit you better?"

Gourry brightened

"Hey yeah! Great idea Xellos! Y'know, for a mazoku you're not so bad."

"Is that a compliment or an insult?"

Gourry cupped his chin in his hand for a moment as he thought over his answer.

"That is… a secret!"

And Xellos crashed to the ground again…_again_.

* * *

**A/N**: I would like to appologise for this chapter, I don't think it's half as good as some of the others. In my defence I can only say Gourry is incredibly hard to write without Lina and that as I start my first year of Uni on monday I've been working to get ready for that rather than on this. 

Don't worry though, the story will continue and be updated as reguarly as possible, if you're lucky (and I mean REALLY lucky) I may even have an the next chapter up tommorow (Sunday) :)

Hitteh Pitteh: Oh come on, only after the AZ chapter? I better hop to it then! Ichiban Victory: Just wait untill the FX chapter when you find out what she's learnt! (manical laughter) ahem, it makes sense that once Filia realised the effect of Amelia's justice speeches she would get the princess to teach her. I'd be greatly suprised if it hasn't been done before... Elling: I have been considering a little ficlet concerning Ame's anti-mazoku lessons, maybe once this is over I'll look into that more seriously. I'm really glad you like this and i hope your mouse stays intact long enough to finish it ;) Yexis Mettalium: I have no objection whatsoever to hearing 'I really liked this chapter' every single time. And don't worry, lately I've been pestering _myself_ to get on with this!


	11. Filia and Lina

Massacre, slaughter, devastation, destruction.

All these were words that came to mind when watching Lina and Gourry eat, although Filia hadn't decided which one was the most accurate yet. She watched with the rest of the group as plate after plate piled up on the dinner table as the two fought to get more than their fair share of the food.

Eventually everyone else ate their fill and migrated away from the table, even Gourry was beginning to slow down, but Lina was still going strong. Finally Gourry cleared his 43rd plate and excused himself, leaving Lina to continue eating and Filia nursing a cup of tea.

Another ten minutes of non-stop eating passed and the kitchen staff were starting to look worried, but Filia was at the end of her tether. She slammed her teacup down causing the table to shake and the kitchen staff to look _extremely_ worried as the piles of empty plates on the table wobbled, but Lina did no more than slow her eating and look up slightly.

"For goodness sake Lina-san! Haven't you had enough? Who do you think is paying for all this?"

Lina swallowed her current mouthful and sat up properly to look at Filia directly, although her fork remained poised defensively over a particularly tasty-looking morsel she'd been saving.

"What do you mean who's paying for this? I am of course!"

The dragon lady was taken aback by this and made a noise of confusion, not fully believing what she'd heard.

"Eh, what?"

"I'm paying."

Filia blinked and just stared at her friend for a moment before shaking her head and trying again.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand…"

"Well… I picked up a _little_ money here and there on your prophecy quest and it's not like I'll be able to use it when I go back to the barrier lands, so I may as well spend it now and give you the change."

After a moment to process this Filia beamed at the sorceress

"T-thank you Lina-san."

Lina shrugged.

"It's nothing."

"There are plenty of other places you could get rid of your 'change' without giving it to me. You don't have to pretend you're not being considerate for once."

Lina laughed a little and scratched the back of her head sheepishly.

"Can't get that one by you huh? Okay, just don't tell anyone else, they'll think I've gone soft!" She grinned then turned and hailed the waiter "Hey! Another round please! Triple portions!"

The waiter scurried off looking terrified and Filia sat back to watch the destruction continue with a smile…

Or maybe carnage was a better word?


	12. Gourry and Zelgadiss

Gourry stood in the hallway trying to get the door to his room open. Unfortunately the key seemed to be stuck; it went in but wouldn't turn. He tried putting it in the other way up, leaning on the door, pulling the door back, turning it the other way, rattling it in the lock –anything to get it open, but it just wouldn't! This door was standing between him and an early nights sleep!

Fortunately for him a certain stoic chimera passed at that moment, and as said chimera had nothing better to do he got out his lock picks and set to work on the door.

"Thanks Zelgadiss!"

"It's okay… you really should go to the innkeeper for something like this though."

"Yeah but he was really busy getting us all that food!" he said with a grin on his face at the memory of the mountains he had devoured that night "I don't think he needs any more work tonight."

Zel remained silent at this, concentrating on the lock, and normally Gourry would let it slide. But given as they wouldn't see each other for a while the least they could do is have a little conversation, right? Did they even have to split?

"Hey, Zel?"

"Yeah?"

"Why don't you travel with us a while longer? It must be hard travelling alone, if you stuck around we'd be able to help."

"No, Gourry. This is something I have to do myself. Besides, if I stayed with you and Lina I'd end up getting sidetracked away from my quest."

"Sidetracked?"

"Diverted, umm, have my attentions somewhere else."

"Oh… come to think of it that does happen a lot…"

"You _don't_ say."

Gourry frowned, he understood sarcasm when he heard it; they didn't do it deliberately! He opened his mouth to say so when his friend continued.

"Also… it's getting harder and harder to leave all my friends… If I don't go now and find my cure then the next time we meet I doubt if I'd be able to go and search on my own anymore, and I'd never find it."

Gourry had about a millisecond in which to blink before Zel realised what he had just said and tried to take it back.

"That is, I mean… not that _I_ wouldn't want to go! Lina and Amelia wouldn't let me! My cure is all that really matters!"

The swordsman just continued to stand there watching him with a smile on his face and, realising he couldn't fool Gourry about this, Zel sighed and looked back to the lock.

"Some heartless sorcerer/swordsman I am…"

Gourry laughed and clamped a hand on the younger man's shoulder.

"Zelgadiss… take care of yourself. And if you need anything look us out, alright?"

He pulled back and gave a thumbs up which Zel returned after a moment before looking back at the lock again. Finally it clicked and Zel stood up to turn the handle.

"I don't believe it…"

"What?"

"This is why I don't like travelling with you people! I end up doing the most pointless…"

"What? What is it?"

"The reason your key wouldn't work. I just broke into my own room, not yours!"

Gourry could only laugh.

* * *

**A/N: Congratulations!** Upon finishing this chapter you have read 4/5ths of Fond Farewells!All that's left now is the final run down; FX AZ and LG!

I'm veryvery _very_ sorry about the amount of time it took me to post this...i underestimated how much time Uni would take up.Which is why I posted two chapters at the same time! Forgive me please? I love you all, really!

Yexis; You'll probably hate me for the delay in these chapters now, given as like the faster one's! I can only say I'm sorry andI hope the wait was worth it! Ichiban Victory; The term 'walking paradox' is one i like to attach to Gourry, looking back I'm prouder of that Gourry chapter than this one, you don't see enough ZG interaction in the anime! Are the books any better? Hitteh Pitteh; Yeah, Xellos was a bit out in that chapter wasn't he? Look who's the lazy one now though, hehe :) I'll try and post FX up really soon so we can move on to AZ (which i've already written and is VERY good even if i do say so myself.)


	13. Xellos and Filia

Filia sat at the vanity in her room brushing the tangles out of her long hair. A late sunset poured in through the window and she enjoyed watching the pinkish tinge it put on her face and hair. It was a rather serene moment.

Until _he _showed up.

She was going to start yelling and screaming when words from earlier filtered back to her; _you react the way he wants you to_.

Not anymore.

Getting her rage under control she calmly returned to brushing her hair, ignoring him completely; if he wouldn't do her the courtesy of knocking on her door or at least showing himself outside the astral plane then she wouldn't do him the courtesy of attention. He didn't deserve it, stupid namagomi…

Xellos waited patiently for all of 40 seconds before increasing the force behind his presence. Yet the stupid dragon continued to ignore him! She went about her business getting ready for bed, removing various items of unimportant clothes as if he wasn't even there! He didn't deserve the silent treatment; he wasn't trying to annoy her… _yet_. He manifested himself physically in the room and coughed to draw her attention, bracing himself for the (attempted) beating he was likely to receive in the next few seconds.

"Hello Xellos-san." She drew the's' in his name out longer than necessary he noted, as if deciding whether or not to add the honorific to the end. "What can I do for you?"

Filia watched amused as somehow he managed to give the impression that he had just blinked despite his eyes still being closed while he tried to understand this new development –She, the 'selfish dragon', being civil, polite even, to _him_?

"Aren't you going to call me a 'namagomi' and throw your mace at me?" he asked

"Why? Have you done something to deserve it?"

Xellos managed to mask his surprise at that question. As it happened he _hadn't_ done anything to deserve it (as far as _she_ knew) but that didn't usually stop her… Still there was only one way to answer a question like that;

"That is… a secret!"

"Of course it is." Filia replied with a smile. It was actually rather fun watching him struggle with the sudden 'change' in her behaviour, she didn't feel angry at his presence for once and the lack of negativity was obviously confusing him.

"Well, I… came to say goodbye really…" Xellos said, and then grinned suddenly, regaining his form "And I'll stop by soon to see you _and_ Val"

He grinned slightly at the taste of rage he got from her at the mention of her 'son' and the thought of him associating with the young dragon. He had to give her some credit though; she hid it well and soon recovered her composure and the neutral air she had developed suddenly.

"Are you sure that's a good idea? Wouldn't all that childish glee would hurt you?"

"Oh, I'll cope Filia-sanAlthough I must say it's so strange for such a selfish dragon to be concerned about little old _me._"

"Yes, I'm sure a filthy mazoku like you would be totally unable to comprehend common courtesy and politeness." Was Filia's instant reply and she would have revelled in her victory at having such a comment ready, instead of lunging for mace-sama, if Xellos hadn't opened his eyes and gained a most serious look.

"When, have I _ever_ been impolite?" He asked. To her chagrin Filia felt herself pale and cower slightly from his gaze. She stood her ground however and met his eyes as she spoke.

"Just now, generally it is considered impolite to enter another's room without knocking or announcing oneself."

Xellos was taken aback by that answer, and the surprise momentarily crossed his face. His expression soon turned back to the usual cheery expression though, if somewhat subdued into a more thoughtful look.

"I see, then, if I refrain from appearing unannounced and so on, you will extend civility towards me and won't hit me for **no **apparent reason?" '_Not that you could hit me if I didn't let you'_ he added to himself

"Provided you do nothing I would object to while in my presence, yes."

"Oh?" he questioned "You realise that being mazoku I'm used to such incivility? Meaning whether one little _insignificant_ dragon is polite to me or not doesn't matter? That isn't much incentive for me to behave myself" he teased.

Filia smiled and looked away from the trickster out of the window at the sunset disappearing over the horizon.

"I had a wonderful conversation with Amelia-san this afternoon. All, about life, love, justice, that sort of thing…" she looked back at Xellos who wasn't having any trouble guessing where this was headed "She even taught me a song about it, perhaps I should demonstrate?"

"That's quite alright, I believe we've reached an understanding." He replied hastily, looking slightly green. "I should go then, farewell." A thought struck him and he added cryptically; "Although it is a shame…"

"What is?"

"I was quite enjoying the show before." He said, eyeing her somewhat loose robes. "Perhaps you would finish before I leave? _Fi-chan_?"

"**NAMAGOMI!**"

Xellos grinned smugly as she lunged for him and teleported out of the room. Good to know he could still push her over the edge. Although, admittedly, he rather liked the polite Filia.

And he _would_ miss the show.

* * *

**A/N:** Don't like this chapter. Fi's ooc... Admitedly that _is_ somewhat the point, but still... I just really wanted to get it out of the way, AZ next:)

Gerao-A: You guys didn't have to go back and review** every **chapter, you know. You make me feel so guilty! I've been reading Slayers Extreme without leaving any reviews! I'm glad you like it and thank you SO much for all the reviews! I love you all:) Ichiban Victory:Again with the 'as always' I swear my ego's never been bigger! With each chapter i do i seem to like the previous better, because NOW i like the GZ chapter, i agree with you about the conversation, Gourry's just a great listener (when he's actually paying attention). And also about Lina, she is soft on the inside. (and yes, the books will be adorning my shelf as soon as i find a copy of them!)Yexis: Another chapter! And AZ should be up soon as well. Hope you like this one! Hitteh Pitteh:Generally reading chapters in order does help, hehe. Glad you liked that chapters and AZ is next! All thats left now is to decide is how long i leave you waiting for it, hmm? Elling: your reviews always leave me feeling warm and fuzzy, or at the very least, smiling. You just always say the nicest things! Thank you! Keep up the good work yourself! ;) Steven P.P: Thank you! I think writing Gourry gets easier the more i do it. I'm quite fond of the conversation now myself and your 'natural' comment really made it for me! Thanks again!


	14. Zel and Amelia

"You're not coming to Saillune with me, are you?"

It wasn't a question really so much as a statement, but it was one Zelgadiss had been putting off answering for sometime. And despite the fact Amelia already seemed to know the answer, for some reason he still didn't particularly want to tell her and couldn't bring himself to look back at her as he answered.

"No, I'm not..."

Amelia nodded silently and moved to join him on the inn's small balcony, leaning on the rail next to Zel as they watched the moon rise from the thin strip of fuchsia on the horizon that was all that remained from the earlier sunset and into the darker skies above.

"What will you do if... I mean, when, you find your cure?" She asked, continuing to watch the moon.

The chimera paused to think for a moment; this wasn't a question that had come up before, one he didn't have an answer for.

"I don't know... get a life I suppose."

He had meant it as a half-joke but Amelia frowned as she thought his response over. After a minute or two of silence she shook her head and turned away from the moon to look at him.

"No, that's not right. This _is_ your life Zelgadiss-san, whether you enjoy it or not. Every moment that passes... is gone... your cure can't fix that... You can't bring back lost time."

Now it was Zel's turn to frown as he considered this. Before he had a chance to get too angsty though, Amelia grabbed his arms and forced him to face her.

"Will you promise me something?"

"That depends on what it is." He asked, slightly suspicious

"At least once a day, I want you to find something that makes you smile."

Zel blinked "What?"

"Find something that makes you smile. Beautiful moments like this watching the moon rise, finding an ancient temple, an inn where they sell decent coffee -whatever makes you smile!"

Zel blinked again. This didn't seem _too_ hard a request although it was certainly unusual. Considering it was Amelia asking though, it shouldn't surprise him too much. However there was still one very important question;

"Why?"

"Because you don't smile enough Zelgadiss-san. If you're smiling then you're happy and if you're happy you realise how wonderful life is and start noticing more things that make you smile. And then I won't have to worry about you getting depressed."

_"Besides which you have a beautiful smile that makes you look even more handsome and it's really unjust that we don't see it more often_" she thought a little sadly and then blushed, noticing that her hands were still on his. He hadn't made any move to pull away…

"...Alright," he said "I promise, I'll try to find something to smile about once a day."

"At _least_."

"At least." he corrected. Amelia nodded, quickly pulled one of her wristbands off and (before Zel could do anything to stop her or even realise what she was doing) slipped it onto his arm.

"This is to remind you, you promised. And if you can't find anything else to smile about you can look at that to remember our adventures and smile at those!"

Zel sighed and resisted the temptation to roll his eyes.

"Amelia on our 'adventures' I've been fireballed, _dragon slaved_, used as an anchor, forced into drag, into a _bunny_ suit, sent on numerous wild goose chases by Xellos and practically killed several times by rather high-ranking mazoku."

"Well then you can be happy that it's all over." She answered promptly with a grin and he had to admit she'd got him there, except for one little detail…

Now that it was really **was** all over he might never see her again. He could be trapped somewhere or lost or any number of possibilities. And if he ever made it back to Saillune… well, there are a lot of reasons royalty employ guards. Not that he wasn't worried about the others of course! Just Amelia happened to be the most vulnerable so of course he'd worry about her more... Really!

A quick glance confirmed there was no-one around to hear, so he placed his hands on Amelia's shoulders causing her eyes to widen with surprise as she looked up at him.

"Amelia... Take care alright? Don't do anything stupid and just… just be safe."

Her expression softened and Zel watched spellbound as she gave him a smile that could probably have killed a dark lord and caused his own thought process to completely seize up. The next thing he knew Amelia's arms were wrapped round his back and her head buried in his chest as she hugged him. Tentatively he returned the gesture and they stood like that for several moments bathed in the moonlight before a cold breeze kicked up causing the princess to shiver. Zelgadiss sighed and began to pull away.

"We'd better get inside."

"Wait! Can we... can we stay like this... just for a little longer?"

He looked down into her sparkling eyes and realised he was completely unable to deny her request, even if he had wanted to.

"...As you wish."

He pulled her close to him again but this time drew the heavy folds of his cloak around them both so they wouldn't be cold. As he did this, Zel caught sight of Amelia's bracelet on his wrist...

...and smiled.


	15. Lina and Gourry

Surprisingly, Amelia was the first to leave the next morning. Lina had expected her to stay with everyone as long as possible, but the princess had discovered a ship was arriving from the barrier kingdom in a nearby port. Normally this wouldn't cause her to rush but unfortunately 'nearby' was a weeks walking away and the ship was arriving in two days, meaning she was leaving early and flying most of the way there.

And so after a goodbye hug and kiss for everyone (except Xellos who looked slightly green at the concept) she was off.

Zelgadiss didn't stay much longer after that, which didn't surprise Lina. He was anxious to go after his cure –She also liked to think that maybe he felt Amelia's absence more than he let on (Although the fact that she and Xellos had been teasing him over getting _two_ goodbye kisses from the princess was probably the main reason for his early departure.)

The trickster himself stayed for breakfast and even offered to pay, not aware he was using the same excuse Lina had to pay for dinner the night before. Only in his case it was probably the truth (for once). Eventually duty called him away and he promised Lina and Gourry he would visit them soon (although threatened may have been a better term than promised) and bowed elegantly to Filia before phasing out.

It wasn't until he'd gone that they realised he hadn't actually _paid_ the bill.

An hour later one irate sorceress and one out-of-pocket swordsman took their leave of Filia, who would be staying in town to set up shop. They began walking as they always did, with no real direction.

"Together again, huh Gourry?"

"What do you mean 'again'?" he asked "were we apart?"

"No, I mean without the others, just you and me" Lina answered distractedly as she considered his questions; were they apart? _Ever_? It was true Gourry had one time said he was going to protect her forever, or at least, the rest of his life. And that time she had asked him-

-She never got an answer for that question though, did she?

"Hey, Gourry?"

"Yeah?"

"You said you were going to 'protect' me the rest of your life, right?" he nodded "But isn't there someone waiting for you to return home? Like your family? Or maybe a, um… a girlfriend?"

Gourry looked thoughtful for a moment and Lina began to regret asking as it was proving hard to keep her face neutral instead of showing the extent of her curiosity.

"Waiting for me at home?" he thought aloud "Amelia (at least I think it was her) said 'home is where the heart is' is that true?"

Lina blinked. It sounded like something Amelia would say, but it was a bit profound a question for Gourry to be asking.

"Well… a house is just a house unless there are people in it you care about and who care about you as well I guess… So yeah, I'd say home is where the heart is."

Gourry smiled, the thoughtful look being cleared away by his usual sunny expression.

"Then there's no-one waiting for me."

"Hm? How'd you figure that?"

"Because… as long as I'm with you then I'm already home." He said calmly, taking his eyes from the road to look at her.

Lina was far from calm though, her heart beat rapidly and she blushed wildly '_did he just say…? No, this is a dream, this has to be a dream._'

Gourry sighed, a strange expression on his face as his eyes drifted from hers towards her chest.

"Although, I wouldn't mind a slightly _bigger_ home."

Nope, definitely not a dream

"**FIREBALL!"**

For one heart stopping moment Gourry just lay on the ground she had blasted him to, but then he coughed and sat up, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, his face was almost completely blackened from her fireball.

"I guess I deserved that one."

"Damn right you did."

The swordsman stood and dusted himself off then turned to continue travelling as they always did after such an incident when he said something stupid and Lina… um... _reprimanded_ him for it. This time however, Lina stopped him.

"Gourry wait! You… you're" she paused for a second and took a breath "You're my home too."

Gourry stopped dead in his tracks and processed this. Lina blushed and refused to meet his eyes, playing with her fingers until he put an arm around her shoulders and smiled at her. She smiled back and they continued walking on like that, together always.

The direction didn't really matter. After all, they were already where they wanted to be.

Home

_

* * *

_

_It's been said enough to drive you round the bend,_

_But it's true; the story doesn't end_

_One day you'll see, time will tell;_

_It's** never** goodbye, only a fond farewell_.

* * *

**A/N:**I like this chapter. Not so much as some others perhaps but i think all considering it's still fairly good. Even if it is slightly sad to see this story.. well, not end, because i'll fovever be imaginaing what happened next, when/if Xellos visited Lina and Gourry,whether Filia managed to stay civil, did Amelia catch the ship, did Val hatch in time for her to meet him, will Zel return to Saillune or find his cure and all those things -so no, the story dosn't end, its just left to be told by ones own imagination.

I have to stop being so philisophical and just say the story ended really don't i? hehehe

In regards to the AZ chapter isn't it absolutley wonderful when you write somthing that you personally are proud of and have it met by some of the most brilliant reviews ever? Thank you to everyone who reviewed that chapter, but you can't have enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. When i typed that last phrase, 'and smiled', I punched the air and screamed "YES!" so loud they probably heard me next door (thank goodness my parents weren't home, heaven knows what they might of thought i was doing)

and in response to those reviews;

Hitteh pitteh: Oh please, you don't seriously think i could possibly **not** write an AZ centered fic? Actually my halloween fic is AZ centered so you won't have to wait long for that at least, provided i get it finished in time that is.Anything else though will take a while so i can make it perfect Elling: Wondrous? Dear Elling, if that is so then only because i have such wondrous reviewers whom inspire me enough themselves. More AZ? Just try and stop me Ichiban Victory; a kiss _would_ have been too much(but i couldn't resist in this chapter), as i said at the start, you can read as much or as little as you want into each chapter, how long do you think 'a little longer' was? LZ fans may have had it as no more that thirty seconds, while AZ fans (who have also seen the Princess bride) may have taken 'As you wish' to mean that little bit more. I actually did things like that the whole was through this, you'll notice in this chapter there's no actual mention of_ love _per say. (although i admit it's hard to read a _little_ into _this_ chapter) There's no need to be sad though; as written above, it's only a farewell Steven P.P: Oh my, the dialouge was my least favourite part of that chapter I much prefered the descriptions like Ame's smile being enough to kill a dark lord. Still, thank you muchly. Stara Maijka: Shattering fanfic stereotypes (or at trying to write without them) was one of my reasons for doing this. I'm glad i seem to have accomplished this! And i absolutley agree with you about that chapter being the best, although I may be more than slightly biased, thank you so much for your praise.

All thats left now i suppose is my thank yous! so, thanks to;

Mischifjen

Newtype Omega

Katze3

Lilting tune

Steven P.P

Stara Maijka

Encyser

The lord of Nightmares

Yexis

And everyone who read.

Special thanks to;

Gerao-A -Who _really_ didn't have to go back and review every chapter, but thanks for doing so anyway!

Hitteh Pitteh - for the (eventual) fave and for being such an attentive audience

Elling - For wondeful reviews that made** me **feel all fuzzy and appriciated.

Ichiban Victory - who's name means great (victory)and damn does she live up to it. Probably my best and most constructive reviewer... as always :)

And so my friends, until the next time, farewell.


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